


Everyday is Christmas

by L82dparty



Series: One shots [6]
Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: Canon Divergence, F/F, Fluff, pp3 never happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2020-12-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:20:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27839755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/L82dparty/pseuds/L82dparty
Summary: Beca comes home to a depressed Chloe just before Christmas and tries to cheer her up.I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of the characters.All mistakes are mine (=
Relationships: Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell
Series: One shots [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2175525
Comments: 14
Kudos: 64





	Everyday is Christmas

Beca opened the door to the apartment and hesitated when the lights were still off. She slid the door closed and looked toward the fold out bed she and Chloe shared. Sunlight trickled in the window revealing the silhouette of someone sitting on the window sill. “Chlo?”

Chloe didn’t turn around. “Over here,” she did reply. 

“Yeah, I hoped that was you and not a burglar.” Beca tried to joke as she put her keys on the hook by the door. “Everything okay?”

“I guess.” Chloe sighed. “I thought I’d have a good job by now. I thought we’d have a bigger place. I thought we could have Christmas. I thought a lot of things.”

Beca stopped walking as Chloe spoke. She couldn’t remember a time the bubbly redhead had ever sounded so sad. “Aw, come on, this place has charm.”

Chloe tossed a glance over her shoulder before returning her gaze to the cityscape outside. “I guess. I mean, it’s nice to be here with you.” After a moment’s hesitation she added, “and Amy.” 

“Did you get her message, by the way?” Beca moved again, landing on the bed behind Chloe. When Chloe shook her head, Beca added, “she’s gone to see her mum. She won’t be back until next year.”

Chloe nodded again. 

Beca thought hard and slowly a smile spread over her face. She moved away from the bed and started pushing things around. 

“What are you doing?” Chloe turned at the noise. 

“You’ll see.” Without another word, Beca continued her work. She sat on the floor at the foot of Amy’s bed and started tugging at things. 

Chloe climbed out of the window, curious. “Come on.”

Beca shook her head and turned her shoulder to hide what she was doing. “Nuh-uh. Not yet. Go watch the sunset or something.” Beca turned the flashlight on her phone on and balanced it on the bed. 

“Do you want a light at least?” Chloe hadn’t realized how dark it had gotten. 

“Nope.” Beca answered absentmindedly. 

Unsure what else to do, Chloe returned to the window, although she leaned back against it, looking inward instead of outward. 

Meanwhile, sure that Chloe couldn’t see what she was up to, Beca rummaged through the storage boxes they all kept under Amy’s bed. She found construction paper and scissors on one box, curling ribbon and wrapping paper in another. In the third she found photographs and tape. 

Her tongue firmly tucked between her teeth, she went to work. It was hard using right handed scissors, so she wasted several pieces of paper before she got the hang of it. She used tape to hold pages together, then to hold pieces of ribbon and pictures in place. Her phone was starting to fade out and in a panic she stood and flipped on the light that illuminated the sink. That gave her enough light to crawl under the bed for another box. Holding her breath that her costume from their last Halloween at Barden was still there, she tugged it open. Her smile broadened to a grin as she found what she was looking for.

A little more tape secured her latest find, and with a nervous chewing of her lip, she tested old batteries. When they worked, she let out a yelp of excitement.

Chloe jumped. In trying to keep from being nosy, she had been taking some quizzes at Buzzfeed and growing used to the near silence. The cars passing under the window three flights down were louder than the noise Beca was making until she yelped. “Are you ok?”

“I’m great!” Beca sounded exultant. “I need you to close your eyes and not cheat for a little while, ok?” She peeked around the clothing rack. “Or look out the window.”

“Ok,” with a laugh Chloe turned to look out the window. She heard Beca move around behind her, but could not for her life figure out from the sound what Beca had done. Just about the time she couldn’t stand the suspense, she heard Beca say, “ok.”

Chloe turned around. There, on the wall nearest the door, was a construction paper Christmas tree. Green paper cut into triangles imitated the layers of a pine tree. Brown paper stuck out the bottom to provide a trunk and scraps of blue, green, white, pink and red paper made up a two dimensional tree skirt. Red and white ribbons snaked their way back and forth diagonally to resemble garlands. Chloe stepped closer to see flickering brought about by strings of small led bulbs whose wires traced down to little battery packs. Her throat tightened as she realized the other colors on the tree were actually pictures of the Bellas in better times, taped to round cut outs of blue, white, green, pink and red circles. “Oh, my god, Beca.”

“I know it’s not much.” Beca swallowed hard. “I didn’t know how expensive it is to live in New York, and my job is barely above an intern and pays shit.” Her voice shook. “But it’ll get better, Chlo. I promise. If I have to add more DJ work, I will. Just.” Her voice broke. “Don’t give up?”

Chloe closed the distance between them and wrapped her best friend up in a hug. “I could never give up. Not on you, not on us.” She pulled back and wiped her eyes of the tears that threatened to fall. “I’ll find something I’m good at. I promise, too. I just feel like I’m such a burden.”

Beca shook her head. “You are never a burden. You make it worth getting up and doing that shit job.” She swallowed hard again. “I mean it, Chlo. Everyday is Christmas as long as you are here.” She was worrying something in her hands.

Chloe sniffed hard and wiped her eyes again. “I should at least make you something to eat, or do my share.”She stopped when she heard a knock at the door. 

Beca stuck whatever was in her hand in her pocket, pulled out her wallet and opened the door. When she finished, she closed it again, this time with a small bag in her hand. With a smile she offered it to Chloe, “you could split this up. I didn’t have much cash, so it’s not much.” She started to apologize.

Chloe opened the bag to three containers with Chinese markings. Her eyes teared again as she moved to the kitchenette and split the fried rice, cashew chicken and egg drop soup. She placed the four dishes on the table, pulled out the chopsticks included with the meal and held the bag open to Beca. “Choose your fortune.”

Beca laughed, “just put them on the table, weirdo.”

“Nope, I can’t touch your fortune. It might ruin it.” Chloe smiled, but the smile faltered when Beca answered seriously. 

“You could never ruin my fortune, Chlo.” But Beca took one cookie out and placed it by her seat before she finished her task of splitting a bottle of beer. 

When they were finally seated, Chloe lifted her glass. “To you, for making a shit day turn out so well.”

Beca blushed but corrected her. “To us, and making everyday better just by being together.”

Chloe swallowed and smiled before she sipped her beer. She put the glass down and lifted the wooden chopsticks to pull them apart. A ring of braided paper slipped off of the wooden sticks and onto the floor.

Like a shot, Beca was on the floor picking it up. She placed it carefully on the palm of her right hand and looked up at Chloe. “I know, I do everything back assward. I mean, I dunno, I just.” She sighed. “I’m not like I’m asking you to marry me or anything. Shit, I’ve never taken you on a real date. But,” she blushed, “I promise to keep trying to take care of you. I promise to keep trying to make our situation better and better. Maybe someday, unless someone comes along and sweeps you off your feet, I can promise more.”

Chloe stared at the ring and then at Beca. A smile crept across her face and she lifted her hand to cradle Beca’s cheek. “How can anyone ever top making Christmas out of nothing at all? You just try and get rid of me, Beca Mitchell.”

Beca smiled bashfully and held out the ring again. 

Chloe took the ring, but she didn’t put it on. She pulled a silver and gold ring she’d always worn on her right hand and picked up Beca’s left. It was too big for Beca’s ring finger, but Chloe thought maybe the middle finger was better just now anyway. “There. I promise to try and take care of you, and make our situation better and better. And maybe, someday, if no one else sweeps you off your feet, I can promise something more.” She looked down at the paper ring, took off her necklace and threaded it onto the chain. “I don’t want to tear it.”

Beca chewed her lip and looked at the ring Chloe had placed on her hand. With a smile and a nod, she took the hematite band she always wore on her thumb and offered it to Chloe. It fit Chloe’s left index finger perfectly. Beca looked into Chloe’s eyes. “Someday?”

“Someday.” Chloe nodded. 

And she knew someday she would tell this story to explain to her children the paper ornaments and Chinese dinner she planned to recreate every Christmas. 

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so sort of inspired by the title of a Taylor Swift song, but with no other connection noted (= merry early Christmas.


End file.
